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It began with minimal resources but immense enthusiasm, working to elevate Indigenous voices in Kajiado County on issues such as health, education, and access to information. Today, Bus Radio has grown significantly and is deeply connected to the peoples it serves.

UNESCO works with Member States and media organizations, including those established and managed by Indigenous Peoples, to enhance media pluralism and diversity and to promote Indigenous ownership of media organizations through knowledge-sharing and collaboration. Through generous contributions to UNESCO, the Multi-donor Programme on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists (MDP), UNESCO organized a Media Partnership Forum in November 2024, which strengthened collaborations among 28 Indigenous and mainstream media organizations from 18 countries, including Victor's Bus Radio. The Forum contributed to the preparation of the which was presented by UNESCO to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in April 2025. 

Victor believes that the role of community radio is undervalued. While countries such as Kenya provide resources for commercial media, Victor emphasizes the missed opportunity of supporting community radios. The grassroots-level radios can have on issues such as artificial intelligence in policy making and advocates for an international Indigenous media platform to engage with policymakers and to enforce the community radios in transforming lives of the most remote populations. 

In an era that has become more reliant on digital technology, Victor argues that radio continues to be an important source of information for communities, particularly remote, and can contribute to the informed policy making in more equitable and community driven. 

1. Can you tell us what role Bus Radio plays in serving the community?

Bus Radio was established in 2017. There was a need for the radio station to be established at the headquarters of Kajiado County, one of the counties in Kenya. Most Indigenous People relied on commercial radio stations located in Nairobi, the capital. They never had the opportunity to access a local radio station or even see how one operates.

Commercial radios could not bridge the gap or reach out to the grassroots level to address the issues affecting the community. So, my team and I embarked on a journey to establish the radio station. We appreciate the Communications Authority of Kenya for granting us the first frequency in Kajiado County, where we are the only radio station broadcasting at its heart.

The role of the radio station is to broadcast live news and programs. We have five programs per day, five days a week. On Saturdays and Sundays, we have children's programs and religious groups coming on board. The role and impact of Bus Radio is unmatched because the community can come to the studio, raise their concerns, and have them aired. This has highlighted and amplified the voices of underserved communities in Kajiado County.

2. Kajiado county is a region home to indigenous Maasai communities living in rural areas. What inspired you to establish Bus Radio and what issues was the community concerned about?

In 2016, I was a newly graduated journalist and part-time activist advocating for the inclusion of Indigenous Maasai voices in county and national conversations. It takes courage for Indigenous men and women to speak out on critical issues like access to information, education, healthcare, clean water, and conflicts over grazing land.

Women were often left behind. In Kajiado, many faced severe challenges, especially the high prevalence of female genital mutilation (FGM). Girls were forced to leave school after being mutilated, then married off young. The practice was brutal and was often performed with shared tools, leading to infection, excessive bleeding, and sometimes death.

We could not just sit back and wait for miracles to happen. So we began moving from county to county, encouraging youth, women, and elders to speak up about FGM, early marriage, teenage pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, and land injustices. Women couldn’t inherit property after a husband's death, creating deep-rooted issues at both household and community levels.

The importance of establishing a radio station was to bring all these issues into one platform where the community could air their grievances. A powerful, vibrant channel that could reach underserved communities in both urban and rural areas. That's how the idea of establishing Bus Radio came to my mind. It wasn't easy. I had just graduated from university with no resources but with ideas and knowledge. I did what I could to start the radio station.

3. Since its establishment in 2017, Bus Radio has grown in both audience and recognition. However, small community radio stations often struggle with financial sustainability. What have been the biggest challenges in keeping the station operational?

We started with one computer and two microphones. We wondered how we would employ people and where we would get the resources to do so. Community radio stations are not-for-profit, and our license from the Communications Authority of Kenya prohibits advertising. 

We went back to the community members and looked for volunteers, recently graduated journalists or well-trained journalists with experience in broadcasting. It was challenging because there were few journalists in Kajiado due to limited opportunities. The community connected us with various NGOs, and we reached out to these organizations with proposals, requesting them to sponsor programs on air to sustain the radio station.

We had also received funds from the Ministry of Health to highlight COVID-19 issues, especially since Kajiado County borders Tanzania at Namanga, where many cases were recorded. We have been surviving through partnerships with NGOs, youth groups, women groups, and government sponsorships for specific issues.

4. In November, you participated in the Media Partnership Forum at UNESCO in Paris, where 26 media organizations gathered to strengthen partnerships between Indigenous-led and non-Indigenous media. You highlighted the lack of Indigenous media representation in policy-making processes. What measures would you like to see implemented to address this issue?

Community radios are often viewed as small media houses rather than vibrant and robust media outlets at the grassroots level. 

I was very clear about the need to establish an international Indigenous media platform where all community Indigenous media can be represented under one umbrella. This way, we can engage policymakers to ensure that the policies they pass in their respective countries recognize community radios.

For instance, in Kenya, the County Government Act of 2012, which established county governments, does not recognize community radios. This is why I was vocal about establishing, revamping, or reviving an International Indigenous Media Forum. This forum helped highlight the challenges that community radio stations face due to bad policies, lack of recognition, and insufficient engagement with policymakers.

5. In what ways, issues like non recognition of the indigenous community media can affect you and other indigenous media around the world?

We are missing resource mobilization opportunities when the national and county governments highlight their development agendas. National and county governments often prioritize commercial and mainstream media in their development agendas. As a result, community media is left behind despite engaging the same audiences they aim to engage across Kenya.

If the government engaged community radios at the local and grassroots levels, we could highlight these issues, empower the community, and bring in experts to inform them about the importance of using AI responsibly and how it can create job opportunities.

6. Do you believe community radio has a future in an era dominated by digital technology and artificial intelligence?

Digital journalism is becoming very strong, and digital spaces like social media sites such as Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, Instagram, and others are providing content creators with a safe space to showcase their content. However, radio still dominates for several reasons.

Firstly, radio is not expensive and is affordable. It is accessible on a phone and can easily be listened to while doing other things or at different locations. 

Radio brings verified news, accurate reporting, and combats fake news. On digital platforms, misinformation and disinformation are rampant, making people distrust what they see on social media.

7. Would the adoption of AI in media make the community radios more vulnerable? 

AI cannot broadcast the way our community radio does, but it will complement what community radio is doing.

However, due to the lack of proper AI policies in our country, which is still struggling to implement them, we need to focus on the advantages and best practices of using AI in our newsrooms. Recently, I saw UNESCO engaging on AI matters. We should consider the best practices for using AI in our newsrooms. If we don't, many people will lose their jobs or face mistrust.

8. Looking ahead, where do you see Bus Radio in the coming years?

We plan to expand our signal coverage in order to reach underserved and unserved audiences. This will grow our follower base and help us to understand the challenges and success stories in areas we have never engaged with before. 

As we extent remote regions where even internet and mobile networks are unreliable, NGOs will be more interested in our work and in collaborating with us. They will recognize new opportunities to deliver their services in places they never thought accessible.